What Type of Lock Should I Buy on My Safe?

Originally safes were only built with rotary-combination dial locks. Now they have digital lock safes and biometric safes in addition to the original rotary style. So which one is best for you depends upon your preferences. Here are some pros and cons of each:

Rotary-Combination Dial

• Combination locks are still more durable and trouble-free than the digital locks found on many low- to medium-cost safes.
• Less prone to wear out
• Slower to open
• Need no batteries
• Combination must be changed by locksmith
• A combination lock requires the door to be closed, the handle to be turned and then the dial spun.  Often users will forget to spin the dial leaving the safe unlocked, but with the door closed, it appears secure
• Very common on higher end gun safes

Digital Lock Safes

• Easy remember combination
• Quick to open, especially important for pistol safe
• Anything electronic is prone to failure at some point
• Requires batteries to operate
• The safe locks by simply closing the door and turning the handle
• Combination can be changed by owner (which can sometimes lead to the owner forgetting the new combination)
• On cheaper models if the keypad fails, the only way to get into the safe it to have a locksmith crack it own using heavy tools

Biometric Safe Locks

• Similar to many pros and cons as Digital Lock Safes above
• Very fast to open, just swipe of finger, great in panic situation
• Requires batteries to operate
• Newer technology that was previously used only by the government and military on high security safes
• Many units can store up to 20 different finger prints for various users

There is not a perfect safe lock for everyone.  You need to think about your application and then purchase a safe you will be comfortable with.